What is the most interesting thing you’ve painted and why?
Rose daRosa: When I got laid off, I was elated. Not because I could afford it—I couldn’t—but because my heart lit up, and I realized I hadn’t been living the life I wanted.
Within months, I turned my Prius into a sleep/studio and set out across the country to pick up my brushes and paint. I spent a year and a half on the road—no particular plan and too many states to count. Just the open road, the work, and the light (and a Prius full of brushes, canvases, and everything I needed to keep painting, anywhere).
How do you describe success?
Rose daRosa: Success means painting anyway—through doubt, fear, and distraction. When the piece falls flat. When the sketch misses. When the doubt shows up before the brush even hits the surface—and still, you begin. Success is showing up, flipping doubt into curiosity and painting anyway. That rhythm matters. It sharpens your eye. It keeps the door open.
And yes, I put the work out there. I enter shows. I compete. I sell. I want it to matter. I want to be in the conversation. I want the challenge, the friction, the possibility. That’s where the next breakthrough lives. Every finished piece, every failure, every step forward—that’s the real work. Success isn’t arrival. It’s engagement with what’s next.
To see more of Rose’s work, visit:
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